ANB-BIA SUPPLEMENT

In some parts of Africa, people are fast experiencing the negative effects of arms’ proliferation.
This is especially true in such countries as Sudan, Somalia, Burundi, Rwanda, Congo RDC

The Church in Africa is gradually becoming concerned with the issue of arms’ proliferation, due partly to its negative effects on people’s lives. A good example of such pastoral concern, is last year’s Regional Consultation for Developing a Regional Strategy Regarding Arms’ Proliferation (Nairobi, Kenya, 25-26 March), and a Cross-Border Regional Consultation on the Proliferation Of Small Arms (Eldoret, Kenya, 9-12 May). The reports from both these Consultations have just been released.

These two Regional Consultations were organized by the regional church body of the Fellowship of Christian Councils and Churches in the Great Lakes Region and Horn of Africa (FECCLAHA) in close co-operation with the Norwegian Church Aid (NCA) and Pax Christi Netherlands.

The Nairobi Consultation

At the end of the Nairobi Consultation, delegates drew up a regional strategy for action plans, which they recommended to Churches and Christian Councils in the regions concerned (the Horn of Africa and the Great Lakes).

• Re. Social economic aspects of marginalized communities — delegates identified three broad strategies: Advocating for empowering of communities in marginalized areas; civic education; involvement.
• Re: Role of the Media — delegates identified two broad strategies:. They include creation of rapports between Christian Councils and media houses, and improving reporting on security issues by the Media.
• Re. Co-ordination and harmonization of programmes —delegates identified three strategies: They include improving co-ordination, networking and lobbying, promotion of sub-regional joint initiatives.
• Re. Policy research and information sharing —delegates identified two broad strategies: They include: capacity building and establishment of data banks.
• Re. The role of inter-faith communities — two broad strategies were identified: They include the strengthening of inter-faith collaboration and inter-faith programmes.

The Eldoret Consultation

At the end of the Cross-Border Consultation on Proliferation of Small Arms held in Eldoret, delegates, who were drawn from the same FECCLAHA areas as the first one i.e. Burundi, Congo-Brazzaville, Congo RDC, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda, called on African Governments to implement and respect the objectives of the year 2000 Declarations i.e. The Nairobi Declaration (15 March 2000) and the Bamako Declaration (30 November–Ist December 2000).

The Nairobi Declaration had proposed the following implementation plan:

• Establishment of National Focal Points.
• The need for regional co-operation and co-ordination of the objectives of the Declaration.
• Legislative measures be put in place.
• The need for operational and capacity building for national databases, communication systems and national training programmes.
• Information exchange and record-keeping to guarantee ground policies, regulations and laws relevant to small arms and light weapons.
• Public awareness for promotion of a culture of peace, education and awareness-raising programmes on prevention of illicit small arms and light weapons.

In the Bamako Declaration, the Churches’ report had encouraged governments of various nations to promote peace, security and confidence between and among member states with a view to reducing a resort to arms. It further stated that governments should promote a culture of peace by encouraging education and public awareness programmes.

The Report was quick to note that: «It is very clear that the Bamako and the Nairobi Declarations are complimentary and that they support the control of illicit small arms and light weapons and promotion of security and peace within the region.

Africa awash with weapons

Church involvement regarding the proliferation of arms in Africa, is because it is clear Africa is a continent awash with illicit weapons. In its recently released global report/survey on the situation of internally displaced people, the Geneva-based Norwegian Refugee Council, addressed itself to the issue/prevalence of both small arms and light weapons on the African continent.

«Africa as a whole is a net importer of small arms, although she has limited domestic manufacturing», the survey observed, stressing that «in North Africa, for example, Egypt, Sudan, Algeria, and Morocco have varying levels of regular production capacity». It adds that in Sub-Saharan Africa, Guinea, Burkina Faso, Nigeria, Cameroon, Ethiopia, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Zimbabwe and South Africa, are all involved in the production business of these dangerous weapons. The Report stresses that, «South Africa is one of the continent’s largest and most sophisticated weapons’ producer. The result of this sad situation is an Africa awash with weapons that are fuelling and helping perpetuate civil war and other local conflicts, and thus the mass displacement of African populations».

As to the original source of these illicit weapons, a report published by the UN in 2001, indicates that «millions of light arms-light weight, highly portable, and devastatingly effective in the lands of even young or poorly trained users, were shipped to Africa during  the Cold War to equip anti-colonial fighters, newly independent states and superpower proxy forces alike. The collapse of the Soviet bloc saw a new flood of small arms entering Africa as manufacturers put additional millions of surplus Cold War-era weapons on the international arms market at cut-rate prices.

A number of African countries have found themselves in the thick of the arms’ business, simply because of their geographical locations, such as being neighbours of countries where such illicit weapons prevail. Kenya is once such unfortunate case. Weapons circulating in Kenya originate from places as far away as China and United States, but most of them passed through war zones in neighbouring countries before making their way onto Kenya’s illegal gun market. For years, Kenya’s territory has been a conduit for weapons shipments destined to nearby areas of violent conflict, but more recently spread of weapons has spilled back into Kenya itself.

• Francis Njuguna, Kenya, February 2003 — © Reproduction authorised, with usual acknowledgment